Family Reunion

The kids and I traveled to the big city of Putnam (population: 91) today for my family reunion. My dad's mother's family gets together ever Memorial Day weekend, and it never fails to entertain.

What kind of fun is a a day outdoors without a tire swing? Answer: none.



For Carter, it was a bit too hot for too much fun. It was his first family reunion, and Leah and everyone else were on alert to keep him from melting. But, when you're this cute, it's not hard to get everyone's attention.

Even the dogs were hot. Granny kept checking on Cinnamon to make sure she wasn't melting in the terrible heat.



Also, it was great to see my dad with his siblings and parents. Aunt Kelly came in from Atlanta and Peggy lives near Putnam.

This was entire gang of my aunts/uncles and cousins who were in attendance.


My favorite part of the weekend was when we recreated a blast from the past. My dad's cousin, Marlene, pulled out some old photos from a family reunion many years ago. 1982 to be exact.

Someone had the bright idea to re-create this golden gem of my dad's cousin Warren, his daughter Leslie, me and Dad.

How can you not get a kick out of that?!

School's Out for Summer

I couldn't be more relieved that the end of school is here. Whew! We are in dire need of a break, and a three-month break sounds amazing.

To top off my elation, Abigail cleaned up at the end of school awards ceremonies. We know she is extraordinary, but it is always nice to see that other people recognize her awesomeness.



Cooper and his class sang at preschool graduation. I never tire of seeing the little ones be so cute!

Hannah Banana

My cousin has this fabulous business that I am finally enjoying. She creates these fabulous cards, and you've got to get some!

She made these awesome thankyou cards that I give to our swim coaches after each meet.



She can create anything your heart desires. Go check her out here!

Zoo Man is an annual last week of school tradition at Abigail's school. The kids look forward to him all year long. This year, Abigail was chosen from the first graders to participate in the show. I'm so glad I wasn't there to see it.




See, why I'm glad I missed it?! I thought so.

In case you were wondering, I'm still a running fool! I just ran my first race and could not be more proud of myself.


Adam and Daniel joined me this morning in the annual Chuy's 5K in Austin.


And, when I say "morning", I mean morning. These runners are early risers. We had to leave while it was still dark and were back home before the kids had even finished breakfast.

The boys finished at least 5 minutes before me because it took me 33 minutes, but I was just proud of myself for not quitting. I ran the entire race with having to walk a bit.


Go me! The truth is that the were a mass of thousands of runners and walkers. An older man (late 50s or 60s) was running in front of me. The back of his shirt said he was a cancer survivor. I promised myself that I would at least keep him in view, and he never quit running so I never quit running. Ha!

I had a blast today in my first race and can't wait for tomorrow's run!

Charlotte's Web

Abigail's teacher recently finished reading Charlotte's Web to the class. It's one of my favorites, so Abigail has read it several times. In fact, the latest animated version of the book was the first movie Abigail saw in a theater. In short, it's a classic that I highly recommend.

Today, the first graders dressed as their favorite characters and paraded through the preschool and elementary classrooms throughout the school.



Unfortunately, I waited until yesterday to put together Abigail's Charlotte costume and then she left the black tights at home this morning. Oh, well. It was still obvious that she was Charlotte, but not one of my finest mommy moments.


The best part of the day was after the parade. Daniel and joined the kids on a walk to the park where they ate lunch, played and fed the ducks. Of course, Abigail didn't want us to sit by her, but we enjoyed the day with her.

Cousins

While in between wedding events, we had some time to meet up with Daniel's sister, Michelle, and her kids, Avery and Harrison. The cousins always love seeing each other.

What a weekend! I wish I had more photographic evidence of all the fabulousness, but I was so busy that my camera hardly saw the light of day. You'll have to take my words for it.

The kids and I traveled to Dallas for the wedding festivities of my childhood friend, Lyndsey. And, when I say festivities, I mean festivities. Seriously. I've never been a part of such a shindig.

Friday night started out at El Fenix with a Mexican feast. Lyndsey and Davinder went all out with a Mariachi band and at least 100 of their closest friends and family members. The rooftop was open and no expense was spared. The kids and I had a blast!

Saturday morning was the Sikh ceremony, and a definite first for us. I Googled Sikh ceremonies and learned as much as I could so we made sure to wear the proper clothes and do all the right things. But, I was still nervous we were going to do something to offend Davinder's family. Davinder arrived in white and gold atop a horse and we all followed him into the ceremony. I had my first bit of nervousness after we removed our shoes just inside the door. The ushers directed Cooper to the right side of the room, where the men were seated. Abigail and I were sent to the left side of the room with the women. Uh-oh. I began to silently panic. I had no idea how long this ceremony would be, or what was about to take place, and I was supposed to send my 4-year-old boy in with no parental supervision! Yikes! Another usher saw the fear on my face and stepped in to tell us that the children would be allowed to sit with the moms. Whew! The rest of the ceremony was panic-free. Abigail kept requesting that I translate the Indian text of the ceremony, which was obviously not happening. I was unable to answer any of her questions about the ceremony. But, the kids made it through without any disturbances. They seemed to be genuinely intrigued by the uniqueness. And, we all had our first Indian meal afterwards. And, the kids would have been pleased to get seconds. They loved it! I think they were awfully cute in their headwraps.




Fortunately, we had time for some rest and naps before getting dolled up and fancy for the night's reception.


This was definitely not my kids' my first wedding. They are old pros by now. But, this was definitely their first event on this level. I should have known we were country kids gone to the big city when we pulled up to the reception. I handed the keys to the valet driver and he took off. Both Cooper and Abigail frantically started jumping up and down and pointing while screaming, "He's taking our car! Where is he taking our car?". Ha ha ha!

The night started with a cocktail hour on the grounds of Arlington Hall at Lee Park. Yes, it's beautiful! (Sidenote: Two weeks after Lyndsey and Davinder's party, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo got married at the same location.)


The kids thought they were so grown up!


But, that thought quickly faded when they found out they were going to the kid version of the party. Lyndsey had a separate room set aside for the few youngster guests where they were supervised, provided with toys and treated to a meal of nuggets and other kid-friendly fare. Now I was the one who was out of my element. Seated with the rest of the grown-ups, I quickly found out I was the only non-doctor at my table of 8. After mingling through the night, it was obvious that the room was at least 90% doctors, but they do know how to have fun.

The kids joined us on the dance floor, and my kids had a blast.


Again, I'm kicking myself for not taking any pics. Fortunately, Abigail was much better prepared. She brought her camera to the reception so I at least have a bit of photographic evidence of the fantastic night. I wish I had photos to share of Lyndsey, because she was absolutely gorgeous! I hope I can one day find a reason to get bejeweled and dressed up for an Indian themed event, because the look was stunning on her!

The next morning, I wrapped up the festivities by hosting a brunch with two of Lyndsey's other friends. It was a great opportunity to serve the new couple and hear about how much all the travelers enjoyed Texas. We served migas, fruit and mimosas, and hopefully blessed Lyndsey and Davinder. I know the kids and I were blessed to be a part of their weekend and can't wait to see them again!

It's Bow-utifull!

I can get pretty crazed about the kid's bedrooms. They've established the habit of making their beds every morning and not going to breakfast until the bedrooms are clean. Yea! Abigail's had this habit down for a while, but it took longer to get Cooper to catch on.

I just can't stand for their rooms to be out of control. Everything has to have a place to go. Lately, Abigail's jewelry and accessories have been exploding everywhere. It just makes me crazy! I finally decided to fix the situation, well, at least the hair accessories.

I have some fabric scraps left over from her window treatments I made. Daniel always has scraps of plywood in the garage. Those two items and a staple gun came together today to make me a bit less crazed.




Did you hear that? That was me and my big, fat sigh of relief. I love to see organization.